A Special Date
by Julia Fernandez Hiwatari
Summary: There's a plan in the works and true love is the cause of it.


A Special Date 

Beyblade

Romance

Kai X Mariah

Rated T

For: **Unaisa Memon**

Bey City was currently in the middle of Winter. The temperatures outside were dropping more and more by the hour, signaling the onset of much colder weather. As wet and dead leaves covered the ground in piles, the sun rose, giving way to the mid-December day.

At the repeating beeping of an alarm clock that read 8:00AM, a thin hand reached up from beneath a gray blanket and with a quick click the noise subsided but the silence didn't last long. Pretty soon the owner of the alarm was up and rustling around his bedroom, in no-time eating some wheat toast with jam and getting a shower. As he washed his hair, the twenty-year-old pondered over for the millionth time what had been on his mind for the past six months… taking the next step.

Soon he found himself trotting down the stairs. Kai Hiwatari was clad in a nice, red shirt and black dress pants. He fixed a black silk tie around his neck and folded the collar of his shirt down. The items he wore looked pressed and wrinkle-free. His black boots looked polished, almost like they were brand new. The matching belt holding up his pants moved seamlessly like a snake through the loops, coming together at the silver buckle. Looking himself up and down in the foyer's body mirror, Kai nervously verbalized the question running through his mind.

"What will she say?" Like most men going through this, he figured he knew what her answer would be, but he found himself second guessing his own thoughts over and over again. Yup, time to admit it, he was frightened.

Kai and Mariah had been dating for nearly five years now and he felt like she was the one. Asking her out after the BEGA Justice Five tournament was the best move he'd ever made. Well, outside the Beyblade dish anyway. She made him so happy and Kai felt he returned the joy. After running a comb through his two-tone hair he jogged out the door.

 _Ok, time to go,_ he thought. It was currently 9:00 in the morning, he could do this.

Across the city, in the downtown area, Mariah stirred in her bed at the sound of firm knocking. The hotel she was staying in with her teammates was nice and gave each of them their own room, with a big lounge area connecting them all. She opened the door to see Lee happily holding a bowl of fresh fruit out to her. She smiled at her older brother and took the bowl.

"Oh my, thank you so much, Lee. This is really sweet of you,"

"All in a mornings work. Enjoy yourself, Mariah!"

 _Enjoy myself? What's he mean by that?_ she thought, confused. Shrugging it off, the dark haired pinkette closed the door and bit happily into a ripe strawberry. She reveled in the sweet flavor coating her mouth. If this was how the day started, she looked forward to whatever else was heading her way. While watching the clouds crowd around the sun, she ate slowly, her mind going over what Lee had said. There was nothing bad about it, it just came off as... odd.

Around 11:00 that morning, Mariah had just finished up in the en suite bathroom when a second, much softer knock came to her door. She sauntered over and looked through the peephole. The moment she saw who had come to visit, her golden cat-like eyes lit up like the stars in night sky.

Opening the door, she nuzzled her now rosy cheeks into his soft red shirt. Kai stumbled back at the initial contact, regaining his balance quickly. A brief glance around told him they were alone for the moment, thus allowing him to drop his barriers and move to hold his love close. At his rhythmic heartbeat, she raised her head and with that movement their eyes met. Mariah could see in Kai's deep, enthralling light purple orbs that he planned to whisk her off on another date. Realizing she'd forgotten something, Mariah ran into her walk-in closet to find her coat.

 _I'm so excited,_ she thought. Thinking back as she looked around for it, their first date had no doubt taken her by surprise. Kai didn't seem the type for a typical romance. From two dozen pink roses and a quiet dinner to a long kiss goodbye at her door. Every second of that day was wonderful and it had only gotten better from then on. Throwing on the prettiest coat she had and dashing out to him, Mariah latched firmly onto Kai's arm with a beaming smile.

The coat she wore was figure flattering and flared at the hips. It was white with baby pink pompoms hanging from matching strings attached to the sleeves and collar of her white fluffy hood. Beneath the coat was a red top to match Kai's shirt and black thermal leggings. Her usual choice of pink shoes was replaced with fluffy white boots this time around. Her hair was fixed the way it always was, in a pony tale with that years-old pink ribbon, that when tied resembled cat ears. Kai didn't mind the ribbon. It was a part of her and he wouldn't dare change it. He loved her in every way.

Stepping out into the hall, he waved at everyone farewell and led her down to the lobby and out into the cold. Phase one done, now onto phase two.

Kai deeply regretted his decision to take Mariah shopping after about an hour of being dragged in and out of stores, loaded with bags. Well, maybe he was exaggerating a bit. She'd carried the bags herself until his inner gentleman forced its way out and plucked them from Mariah's hands.

The lovebirds had hoped for a somewhat quiet day but as luck would have it, Tyson appeared out of the woodwork. His red-earth brown eyes beamed with cockiness, as usual. Mariah felt Kai stiffen beside her as he stared Tyson down, daring him to say something. And dare the world champion did. This most certainly would not end well.

"I see Mariah has you wrapped firmly around her little finger, Kai. Turned you into a pack horse too!" Mariah jaw nearly hit the floor. She couldn't believe what she just heard. Reluctantly deciding to take a glance at Kai she saw something she dreaded. To put it bluntly he was seething. If looks could kill Tyson would certainly be a pile of ash by now.

Kai was one taunt away from violently slamming Tyson into the ground when Hilary came along and dragged the bluenette away by his ear. The brunette also prevented him from snapping a picture of Kai and Mariah spending time together. All the while muttering something about Tyson being disrespectful and that Kai deserved to have some privacy. At least let him live without his love life being used as blackmail or plastered all over social media.

At around lunchtime Kai took Mariah to an ice cream parlour to treat her further and so he could rest his aching arms. She gave him the biggest, cutest puppy dog eyes you'd ever seen when he tried to dodge ordering something for himself, settling on a blueberry meringue just to keep her from bugging him. He just couldn't say no to her.

Mariah often hated how Kai was reluctant to display any form of affection in public but at the same time, she understood. Journalists had hounded Kai for weeks when they found out he'd revolted against an arranged marriage in favor of her. Some of Kai's "loyal" fan girls had given Mariah hell, accusing of her of trying to steal his money. Until he stepped in and put them in their place. Oh the stern threats and call outs. Looking back on the incident, it was scary but so sweet. She knew Kai had a colorful vocabulary from knowing three different languages but wow.

A failed relationship with Ray certainly hadn't helped Mariah's reputation any while the raven haired blader's went unhindered. But she was content now, even if the distance between her and Kai was wide.

Seeing that Mariah was drawing back into the negativity of her past, Kai dabbed at his lips with a napkin and briefly brushed his fingers over hers. Mariah flinched, looking up from her half melted bowl of ice cream to see intense eyes gazing worriedly at her. She smiled weakly, reaching out for Kai's hand across the table, surprised when he didn't pull away from the gesture.

"Enjoying your day so far, Dumpling?"

The sudden hushed question caused Mariah to flinch, almost dropping her spoon as she'd been about to start eating. He wasn't fooled by the sweet smile directed at him, pulling Mariah's hand closer to his side of the table.

Mariah's cheeks shifted from being vaguely dusted pink to having bold patches of red. Kai's chuckle of amusement caused her to puff up a little but he only laughed more.

Mariah didn't see herself as attractive, her hips too wide and shoulders too broad. When Kai had first started calling her "Dumpling" Mariah saw it as an insult. Nearly biting his head off. But to her surprise, dumplings were one of his favorite foods, especially the stuffed ones she made. Her figure reminded him of them, hence the nickname. Since learning that, Mariah had been more accepting and considered it a term of endearment. She hadn't yet come up with a good one for him but for now her nickname for him was "Firefly." In a way it fit. He was her beacon, her light in the dark.

Once they'd finished eating, the air fell heavy and silent. Kai could tell something was wrong. It wasn't like Mariah to be so quiet. In an attempt to draw her usual self out, Kai shuffled closer and pecked Mariah softly on the cheek, their fingers locked tightly.

"Come on, honeybun," he whispered softly in her ear. "I have a surprise for you that'll put a smile back on your face." She lifted her head to look at him.

"I can assure you it won't leave," he added, squeezing her hand.

Mariah didn't know what to expect as she strolled through the streets, tightly grasping Kai's hand. They'd dropped her bags off at his place after leaving the mall. Kai looked down at Mariah occasionally as they walked, heart pounding in his chest. The entrance of a zoo stood tall before them, bringing their walk to an end.

While Mariah wasn't a huge fan of animals in captivity she loved being able to see them up close. The howler monkeys reminded her of Kevin and a dozing grizzly bear brought forward fond memories of Gary. A proud lion sitting amongst his pride was reminiscent somehow of Lee.

It wasn't long before the petting area of the zoo grabbed Mariah's attention. Kai left her side briefly, despite her eyes being glued to a group of white tiger cubs. She wasn't going anywhere. Mariah's arms were close to wrapping around one of the cubs when a life sized plush version was deliberately placed in the way. Looking up, Mariah saw Kai crouched beside her, swearing for a brief moment there was a glint of worry in his eyes.

"I wouldn't advise that, Dumpling."

Hugging the plush tiger close, Mariah willingly went along as Kai led her out of the petting area.

The highlight of their outing for Mariah was the panda enclosure. Cubs of all sizes wandered around, doing what young pandas did best…being silly and adorable. Kai warily followed Mariah into the paddock as the person who looked after the cubs ensured them the youngsters were harmless. He had to admit, the pandas were super cute and Mariah somehow convinced him to hold one, a younger cub too in her arms. They spent the best part of half an hour just playing with the pandas. It pleased Kai greatly to see Mariah smiling gleefully, continuing to spoil her with a panda shaped pendant from the gift shop. He'd do anything to keep her smiling like that.

Now standing by the tiger enclosure, they were surrounded by soft twinkling lights, bathing them in a warm glow as snow began to fall. While Mariah was busy watching the animal her team was named after, Kai pulled a small box out of his pocket that was wrapped in pink tissue paper. It wasn't Kai's favorite color in the world but Mariah loved it as much as she loved him. He kissed her cheek softly, getting her attention once more, and she turned to face him. When Mariah opened the box, Kai discreetly plucked what was inside out of it before she could see.

Seeing Mariah frown, Kai cleared his throat and got down on one knee, not caring for the snow beneath him. Mariah's heart started beating faster as Kai took her left hand tenderly in his, feeling him tremble with nerves. Was he about to...?

"Mariah Wong, light and love of my life, will you marry me?"

Gentle flurries of snow soon thickened as the two walked home, Kai holding Mariah's hand lovingly and protectively. A sterling silver engagement ring fitted with a fine cut pink rose diamond was wrapped around her delicate ring finger. Now _this_ was the best decision he'd ever make. Yeah, she was enough for him and always would be.

The End

 **This was a long time coming and I'm so sorry it was. I couldn't have finished this without the help of Rainbow-Winged Phoenix. Seriously credit to her for how amazing this turned out. Thank you so much! We hope you like this, Unaisa. Enjoy! I appreciate you guys and gals so much! :)**


End file.
